The Irish Government is expected to make early moves to address the long-running controversy over extra unpaid hours introduced for tens of thousands of Public Servants in 2013.
Cabinet will formally approve the establishment of an expert group, chaired by former Chief Executive of the Workplace Relations Commission, Kieran Mulvey (pictured), to look at the costs involved in the rolling back of these hours and the implications for services. It is to report by the end of the year.
The establishment of the group and the Government’s commitment to set aside a €150 million ($A233 million) fund to pay for the implementation of its recommendations were key features of the Public Service pay deal agreed last December.
Minister for Public Expenditure, Michael McGrath is expected to urge the Government to back a number of elements of the new agreement.
Mr McGrath is to tell the Cabinet that new reform plans in areas such as education, health, higher education, Local Government and the Irish Prison Service are to be signed off and published no later than the middle of the month.
These plans formed part of the agreement which would see about 350,000 State employees receive one per cent pay rises this year and next.
The move towards unwinding the additional working hours legislation, introduced as part of austerity measures as the economy reeled in the wake of the Global Financial Crisis, was a major issue for trade unions in the negotiations on the accord.
Previous Government policy had been that such productivity measures were permanent.
Mr McGrath’s Department has previously estimated that it could cost more than €600 million ($A932 million) to abolish the additional hours, although these figures are disputed by unions.
Dublin, 5 May 2021
